Generating a tomographic image based on sensor information

ABSTRACT

An image processing device for capturing an ultrasonic image is provided with a probe to generate an ultrasonic wave and receives a reflective wave reflected at an object. A detection unit to detect one or more physical quantities of the probe. A display unit to display a tomographic image showing a cross-section of a predetermined position of the object, out of the ultrasonic image of the object. A sensor information acquisition unit to acquire a detection result by a sensor unit as sensor information. In a tomographic image generation unit, regarding the sensor information as a parameter, a reference tomographic image is transformed according to a change of the parameter, to generate the tomographic image. A display control unit to control the display unit to display the generated tomographic image. The present technique can be applied to an ultrasonic examination device.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present technique relates to an image processing device, an imageprocessing method, and a program, and particularly to an imageprocessing device, an image processing method, and a program capable ofgrasping an ultrasonic image with an intuitive and simplified operation.

BACKGROUND ART

In a medical field, the following has been widely performed in recentyears: an examination (hereinafter, referred to as an ultrasonicexamination) that uses a device for imaging an ultrasonic image of abody organ or the like (hereinafter referred to as an ultrasonic imagedevice). Specifically, the ultrasonic image device includes a probe anda display. A doctor or the like checks the ultrasonic image of an objectto be examined, such as an organ displayed on the display, whilepressing the probe against a subject's body to make the ultrasonicexamination (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

CITATION LIST Patent Document

Patent Document 1: JP 2011-152356 A

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

However, in an ultrasonic image device of the related art, a probe and adisplay are physically separated and configured individually. Therefore,a doctor or the like views a subject's body on which the probe ispressed and the display on which an ultrasonic image of an object to beexamined is displayed alternately to check an examination process, whilefacing the display. As a result, the doctor or the like has to busilylook at various positions. Thus, substantial effort is required for anultrasonic examination.

Even in the ultrasonic image device of the related art, if apredetermined operation is performed to a controller physicallyseparated from the probe and the display, it is at least possible todisplay, on the display, the ultrasonic image showing a cross-section ofany position in the body (hereinafter referred to as a tomographicimage). However, the doctor or the like has to perform many complicatedoperations to the controller to display the tomographic image of adesired position in the body. Note that it is difficult for the doctoror the like to intuitively grasp an imaging position in the body bymerely simplifying many operations.

The present technique has been invented under such circumstances, andallows the grasp of an ultrasonic image with an intuitive and simplifiedoperation.

Solutions to Problems

An image processing device according to one aspect of the presenttechnique includes a probe, a sensor unit, a display unit, a tomographicimage generation unit, and a display control unit. The probe generatesan ultrasonic wave and receives a reflective wave reflected at anobject. The sensor unit detects one or more physical quantities of theprobe. The display unit displays the tomographic image showing across-section of a predetermined position of the object based on thereflective wave received by the probe. In the tomographic imagegeneration unit, regarding sensor information detected by the sensorunit as a parameter, a reference tomographic image is transformedaccording to a change of the parameter, whereby the tomographic image tobe displayed on the display unit is generated. The display control unitcontrols the display unit to display the tomographic image generated bythe tomographic image generation unit.

The tomographic image generation unit may use at least a part of thesensor information as an input parameter to calculate a predeterminedfunction, obtain accordingly at least one of variable elements of adepth, a rotation angle, and a zoom ratio of the tomographic image, andtransform the reference tomographic image by use of the variable elementto generate the tomographic image to be displayed.

The sensor unit may detect pressure applied by the probe as the sensorinformation. The tomographic image generation unit may associate achange of the pressure with a change in the depth from the predeterminedposition of the object to generate the tomographic image.

The tomographic image generation unit may generate the tomographic imagesuch that the stronger the pressure of the probe, the deeper the depthof the tomographic image from the predetermined position of the object.

The sensor unit may detect a rotation angle of the probe as the sensorinformation. The tomographic image generation unit may associate achange in the rotation angle with the rotation angle and/or the zoomratio of the tomographic image to generate the tomographic image.

As the rotation angle, the sensor information may include each rotationangle of an X axis, a Y axis, and a Z axis. The tomographic imagegeneration unit may associate a change in the rotation angle of the Xaxis with the rotation angle of the X axis of the tomographic image,associate a change in the rotation angle of the Y axis with the rotationangle of the Y axis of the tomographic image, and associate a change inthe rotation angle of the Z axis with the zoom ratio of the tomographicimage to generate the tomographic image.

The tomographic image generation unit may generate the tomographic imagesuch that the larger the rotation angle of the X axis or the rotationangle of the Y axis, the larger the rotation angle of the tomographicimage.

The tomographic image generation unit may generate the tomographic imagesuch that the larger the rotation angle of the Z axis, the larger thezoom ratio of the tomographic image.

The tomographic image generation unit may obtain information on a touchoperation on a touch panel as the parameter, and transform the referencetomographic image by associating the transformation with the change ofthe parameter to generate the tomographic image to be displayed on thedisplay unit.

An image processing method according to one aspect of the presenttechnique corresponds to the image processing device according to oneaspect of the present technique described above.

A program according to one aspect of the present technique correspondsto the image processing device according to one aspect of the presenttechnique described above.

In the image processing device and method according to one aspect of thepresent technique, an ultrasonic wave is generated to be reflected at anobject, the thus obtained reflective wave is received, one or morephysical quantities is detected, the tomographic image showing thecross-section of the predetermined position of the object is displayedbased on the received reflective wave, and the tomographic image to bedisplayed is generated by regarding detected sensor information as theparameter and transforming a reference tomographic image according tothe change of the parameter.

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION

As has been described, according to the present technique, it ispossible to grasp an ultrasonic image with an intuitive and simplifiedoperation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an outline of the present technique.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a positional relationship among anexaminer, an image processing device, and a body.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary outer configuration of theimage processing device.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary configuration of theimage processing device to which the present technique is applied.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of display processes of anultrasonic examination result.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between pressure and adepth of a viewpoint of a tomographic image.

FIG. 7 is a diagram specifically illustrating a process result.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between an angle ofrotating about an X axis and the tomographic image.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between an angle ofrotating about a Y axis and the tomographic image.

FIG. 10 is a diagram specifically illustrating a process result.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between an angle ofrotating about a Z axis and the tomographic image.

FIG. 12 is a diagram specifically illustrating a process result.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary display screen when anoperation is made on a touch panel.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating another example of the display screenwhen the operation is made on the touch panel.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the tomographicimage.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating another display example of thetomographic image.

FIG. 17 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary configuration ofhardware of the image processing device to which the present techniqueis applied.

MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[Outline of Present Technique]

First, an outline of the present technique is described to makeunderstanding of the present technique easy.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an outline of the present technique. Animage processing device 1 to which the present technique is applied isan ultrasonic image device obtained by integrating a display unit suchas a display, and a probe. The image processing device is used for anultrasonic examination in a medical field, for example. Note that, amongsurfaces of the image processing device 1, a surface to which thedisplay unit is provided is called a front surface, and a surface whichis opposite to the front surface and to which the probe is provided iscalled a back surface. Also note that, for simplifying the descriptionbelow, a direction from the front surface to the back surface of theimage processing device 1 is called a downward direction, and reversely,a direction from the back surface to the front surface of the imageprocessing device 1 is called an upward direction, based on thepresumption that the image processing device 1 can be placed in anyposition.

As illustrated in FIG. 1A, during the ultrasonic examination, the backsurface, to which the probe is provided, of the image processing device1 is pressed against a predetermined position on the surface of a bodyhb of a subject, in other words, a position immediately above an objectto be examined, such as an organ. At this time, the display unitprovided to the front surface of the image processing device 1 displays,in real time, a tomographic image showing a cross-section of anyposition of the object to be examined. Thus, the doctor or the like whoperforms the ultrasonic examination (hereinafter referred to as anexaminer) views the tomographic image of the object to be examineddisplayed on the display unit, from immediately above the front surfaceof the image processing device 1. In this manner, the examiner can havea sense as if viewing inside the body hb over the display unit of theimage processing device 1.

Further, as illustrated in FIG. 1B, the examiner may change a level ofpressing force applied to the body hb by the image processing device 1to change a depth (in other words, a distance from the back surface ofthe image processing device 1) of a position in the body which is shownin the tomographic image as the object to be examined. Specifically, ifpressure P of the image processing device 1 applied by the examiner tothe body hb becomes stronger in order of pressures P1, P2, and P3, thedepth from the surface of the body hb displayed on the display unit asthe tomographic image increases in order of depths d1, d2, and d3. Inthis manner, according to the intensity of the pressure P, the depthposition from the surface of the body hb displayed on the display unitas the tomographic image increases.

Alternatively, although the detail will be described later, the examinermay change an angle (hereinafter simply referred to as the angle of theimage processing device 1) formed between the back surface (in otherwords, the probe) of the image processing device 1 pressed against thebody hb and the surface of the body hb to thereby change a virtualviewpoint for imaging inside the body hb. In other words, according to achange of the angle of the image processing device 1, the virtualviewpoint also changes. In this manner, the display unit of the imageprocessing device 1 displays the tomographic image showing inside thebody hb imaged from the virtual viewpoint according to the angle of theimage processing device 1.

Further alternatively, the examiner may rotate the image processingdevice 1 while pressing the image processing device 1 against the bodyhb. Accordingly, the display unit is allowed to display the zoomed-in orzoomed-out tomographic image.

[Positional Relationship Among Examiner, Image Processing Device 1, andBody hb]

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the positional relationship among theexaminer, the image processing device 1, and the body hb.

The image processing device 1 is configured by integrating a displayunit 11 and a probe 12. Note that the display unit 11 is provided at afront surface of a housing 1C of the image processing device 1. In otherwords, more specifically, in the present embodiment, the probe 12 isprovided at the back surface of the housing 1C. Thus, the display unit11 is integrally provided with the probe 12.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the image processing device 1 is arranged suchthat a visual line of an examiner, a normal line of a display surface ofthe display unit 11, a radiation direction of an ultrasonic wave of theprobe 12, and a direction nearly vertical to the front surface of thebody hb of a subject are aligned nearly on a straight line. Note that,in practice, the probe 12 is in contact with the front surface of thebody hb.

By arranging the image processing device 1 in this manner, for anobservation purpose, the examiner can cause the display unit 11 todisplay an ultrasonic image of an object to be examined which isimmediately below a position of the body hb against which the probe 12is pressed.

[Exemplary Outer Configuration]

Next, an exemplary outer configuration of the image processing device 1is described.

FIG. 3 illustrates the exemplary outer configuration of the imageprocessing device 1, that is, in detail, a front view, a back view, anda side view.

FIG. 3A illustrates the front view of the image processing device 1. Asillustrated in FIG. 3A, the display unit 11 is provided to a frontsurface of the image processing device 1, that is, a front surface ofthe housing 1C. The display unit 11 displays a tomographic image of anobject to be examined inside the body hb.

Note that the display unit 11 may have a function of displaying atwo-dimensional image, and further, may have a function of displaying athree-dimensional image. If the display unit 11 has the function ofdisplaying the three-dimensional image, either a glasses technology thatuses polarizing filter glasses and shutter glasses, or a naked eyesystem without using glasses such as a lenticular method may be adopted.The display unit 11 may have any size.

FIG. 3B is the back view of the image processing device 1. Asillustrated in FIG. 3B, the probe 12 is provided to a back surface ofthe image processing device 1, that is, a back surface of the housing1C. The probe 12 includes a plurality of oscillators (not shown) inside.When an ultrasonic wave is sent out from each of the plurality ofoscillators, the ultrasonic wave is reflected at the object in the bodyhb, and a reflective wave is received by the probe 12 again. The imageprocessing device 1 (in detail, a main control unit 51 in the housing C1described later) processes the received reflective wave in apredetermined manner to generate data of the tomographic image of theobject to be examined.

The probe 12 is used in contact with the body hb of a subject. Thus, itis preferable to use a soft and thick material allowing conduction ofthe ultrasonic wave for a contact surface between the probe 12 and thebody hb so that imaging is possible regardless of a recess and aprojection on the surface of the body hb.

Further, the oscillator in the probe 12 is not particularly limited aslong as a two-dimensional plain surface can be imaged. For example, itis possible to adopt the oscillator of types, such as a two-dimensionalarray type and a one-dimensional array parallel moving type.Accordingly, the display unit 11 displays the tomographic image parallelto a display surface. Incidentally, if the oscillator of aone-dimensional array type is adopted as the oscillator in the probe 12,the tomographic image vertical to the display surface is displayed.Therefore, in this case, the probe 12 is manually moved in parallel toallow displaying the tomographic image of the two-dimensional plainsurface.

FIG. 3C is the side view of the image processing device 1. Asillustrated in FIG. 3C, the image processing device 1 is configured byintegrating the housing 1C that includes the display unit 11, and theprobe 12. Note that the housing 1C and the probe 12 may have any size.

[Exemplary Configuration of Image Processing Device 1]

Next, an exemplary configuration of the image processing device 1 isdescribed.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration example of theimage processing device 1 to which the present technique is applied.

As described above, the image processing device 1 includes the displayunit 11 provided to a front surface of the housing 1C, and the probe 12provided to a back surface of the housing 1C. Specifically, the imageprocessing device 1 includes, in its housing 1C, a main control unit 51,an input unit 52, an ultrasonic image storage unit 53, a sensorinformation storage unit 54, and a tomographic image storage unit 55.

The probe 12 includes an ultrasonic wave transmission/reception unit 21and a detection unit 22.

Under the control of an ultrasonic wave control unit 61, which isdescribed later and included in the main control unit 51, the ultrasonicwave transmission/reception unit 21 transmits/receives an ultrasonicwave. Specifically, the ultrasonic wave transmission/reception unit 21includes an ultrasonic wave generation unit 31 and an ultrasonic wavereception unit 32.

Under the control of the ultrasonic wave control unit 61, the ultrasonicwave generation unit 31 generates an ultrasonic wave. More specifically,the ultrasonic wave generation unit 31, for example, oscillates a pulseultrasonic wave at a predetermined interval, and scans a surfaceparallel to the probe 12 with the ultrasonic wave.

If the ultrasonic wave is generated by the ultrasonic wave generationunit 31 and the ultrasonic wave reflected at an object to be examined inthe body hb reaches the probe 12, the ultrasonic wave reception unit 32receives the ultrasonic wave as a reflective wave. Then, the ultrasonicwave reception unit 32 measures the intensity of the received reflectivewave and feeds, to an ultrasonic image generation unit 62 describedlater and included in the main control unit 51, a group of data(hereinafter referred to as ultrasonic wave measurement data) obtainedby arraying types of data indicating the intensity of the reflectivewave in chronological order, for example.

The probe 12 that includes such ultrasonic wave transmission/receptionunit 21 includes the detection unit 22 as described above. The detectionunit 22 detects a condition (for example, a position, an orientation andthe like) of the probe 12. In order to detect a predetermined physicalquantity of the probe 12, the detection unit 22 includes an accelerationsensor 41, an angular velocity sensor 42, a geomagnetic sensor 43, and apressure sensor 44.

The acceleration sensor 41, for example, detects the acceleration of theprobe 12.

The angular velocity sensor 42 detects, for example, angular velocity ineach of X, Y, and Z directions of the probe 12 to determine a tilt ofthe probe 12. Note that, hereinafter, an X axis is a direction(left-right direction) crossing the body hb of a subject, a Y axis is abody height direction of the subject, and a Z axis is a thicknessdirection of the body hb of the subject.

The geomagnetic sensor 43, for example, detects the orientation of theprobe 12.

The pressure sensor 44 detects the pressure applied to the body hb bythe probe 12 when the probe 12 is pressed against the body hb to takethe ultrasonic image.

Incidentally, a detection result of the detection unit 22 is fed to asensor information acquisition unit 63, which is described later andincluded in the main control unit 51, as sensor information.

This kind of probe 12 is controlled by the main control unit 51.Specifically, the main control unit 51 controls the entire operation ofthe image processing device 1 including the probe 12. In detail, themain control unit 51 includes an ultrasonic wave control unit 61, anultrasonic image generation unit 62, a sensor information acquisitionunit 63, a tomographic image generation unit 64, and a display controlunit 65.

Based on an instruction operation to the input unit 52 by an examinerand each sensor information fed from the sensor information acquisitionunit 63, the ultrasonic wave control unit 61 controls the ultrasonicwave generation unit 31 and the ultrasonic wave reception unit 32included in the probe 12 to perform various operations associated withtransmission/reception of the ultrasonic wave.

Based on the ultrasonic wave measurement data fed from the ultrasonicwave reception unit 32, the ultrasonic image generation unit 62generates data of the three-dimensional ultrasonic image of the body hbpositioned immediately below the area where the probe 12 is pressed, asthe data of the ultrasonic image of the object to be examined, accordingto any publicly-known method or method to be newly found. The thusobtained data is stored in the ultrasonic image storage unit 53.

The sensor information acquisition unit 63 acquires the sensorinformation fed from the probe 12 to store the sensor information in thesensor information storage unit 54. At the same time, the sensorinformation acquisition unit 63 appropriately feeds the sensorinformation to the ultrasonic wave control unit 61. When the position,the orientation and the like of the probe 12 are changed, a distancefrom the probe 12 to an object to be examined in the body hb is alsochanged. Accordingly, the sensor information acquisition unit 63 feedsthe sensor information to the ultrasonic wave control unit 61 so that inthe probe 12 having undergone the above change, a focal point of theultrasonic waves transmitted/received from/by the ultrasonic wavetransmission/reception unit 21 is adjustable.

Based on data of the ultrasonic image stored in the ultrasonic imagestorage unit 53 and the sensor information stored in the sensorinformation storage unit 54, the tomographic image generation unit 64generates data of the tomographic image (that is, a two-dimensionalimage showing a cross-section of a predetermined position in the bodyhb) of the object to be examined to store the data in the tomographicimage storage unit 55.

Based on the data of the tomographic image stored in the tomographicimage storage unit 55, the display control unit 65 controls the displayunit 11 to display the tomographic image of the object to be examined.Further, the display control unit 65 controls the display unit 11 todisplay the sensor information stored in the sensor information storageunit 54 when necessary.

[Display Processes of Ultrasonic Examination Result]

Next, among processes executed by the image processing device 1, adescription is made by referring to FIG. 5 for a series of processes(hereinafter referred to as display processes of the ultrasonicexamination result) until displaying a tomographic image of an object tobe examined based on sensor information as a result of the ultrasonicexamination.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of the display processes ofthe ultrasonic examination result.

The display processes of the ultrasonic examination result are startedwhen an examiner inputs an instruction to the input unit 52 or the liketo start imaging.

The ultrasonic wave generation unit 31 generates an ultrasonic waveunder the control of the ultrasonic wave control unit 61 at step S1.

At step S2, under the control of the ultrasonic wave control unit 61,the ultrasonic wave reception unit 32 receives a reflective wave of theultrasonic wave generated by the ultrasonic wave generation unit 31.Then, the ultrasonic wave reception unit 32 measures the intensity ofthe received reflective wave to feed, to the ultrasonic image generationunit 62, ultrasonic wave measurement data indicating a measurementresult.

Based on the ultrasonic wave measurement data fed from the ultrasonicwave reception unit 32, at step S3, the ultrasonic image generation unit62 generates data of a three-dimensional ultrasonic image of the body hbpositioned immediately below the probe 12.

At step S4, the ultrasonic image generation unit 62 stores the generateddata of the ultrasonic image in the ultrasonic image storage unit 53.

At step S5, the sensor information acquisition unit 63 acquires thesensor information fed from each sensor of the probe 12.

At step S6, the sensor information acquisition unit 63 stores theacquired sensor information in the sensor information storage unit 54.

Based on the data of the three-dimensional ultrasonic image read fromthe ultrasonic image storage unit 53 and the sensor information readfrom the sensor information storage unit 54, at step S7, the tomographicimage generation unit 64 generates the data of the two-dimensionaltomographic image showing the object to be examined viewed from apredetermined virtual viewpoint. Specifically, first, the tomographicimage generation unit 64 generates reference data of the tomographicimage. Then, the tomographic image generation unit 64 calculates apredetermined function by presuming the acquired sensor information asan input parameter. Accordingly, at least one of variable elements of adepth of a viewpoint, a rotation angle, and a zoom ratio of thetomographic image is obtained. Thereafter, the tomographic imagegeneration unit 64 transforms reference data based on a predeterminedalgorithm by use of the element to generate the data of the tomographicimage. That is, when the depth of the viewpoint, the rotation angle, orthe zoom ratio of the tomographic image is changed, the data of thetomographic image to be generated also changes. A method for generatingthe data of the tomographic image is described later.

The tomographic image generation unit 64 stores the generated data ofthe tomographic image in the tomographic image storage unit 55 at stepS8.

The display control unit 65 displays the tomographic image at step S9.Specifically, the display control unit 65 reads the data of thetomographic image from the tomographic image storage unit 55 andcontrols the display unit 11 to display the tomographic image based onthe read data of the tomographic image.

The input unit 52 determines at step S10 whether an end of theultrasonic examination has been instructed.

If the end of the ultrasonic examination has not been instructed (NO instep S10), the process returns to step S1 to repeat step S1 and thesubsequent processes. That is, until the end of the ultrasonicexamination is instructed, loop processes from step S1 to step S10 arerepeated.

Thereafter, if the end of the ultrasonic examination is instructed (YESin step S10), the display processes of the ultrasonic examination resultare ended.

[Relationship Between Pressure and Tomographic Image]

Further, hereinafter, among the display processes of an ultrasonicexamination result, a process at step S7 is specifically described.Specifically, a method for generating data of a tomographic image at aprocess of step S7 is described in detail.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between pressure Papplied to the body hb by the image processing device 1 and a depth of aviewpoint of a tomographic image. Herein, presuming the presence of avirtual viewpoint in an upward direction from a surface of the body hb,the depth of the viewpoint of the tomographic image means a distance inthe vertical direction (herein, a Z direction) from the virtualviewpoint to a position of an object to be examined (a cross-section)shown in the tomographic image.

As illustrated in FIG. 6, when the predetermined pressure P is appliedto the body hb in a Z axis direction by the image processing device 1, adepth D of the viewpoint of a tomographic image g1 displayed on thedisplay unit 11 is represented by, for example, the following formula(1).D=α×P  (1)

In the formula (1), a coefficient α is a parameter for adjustment and anexaminer can freely set and change the coefficient.

The sensor information acquisition unit 63 acquires sensor informationthat includes a detection result of the pressure sensor 44 included inthe detection unit 22 and stores the sensor information in the sensorinformation storage unit 54. Then, the tomographic image generation unit64 substitutes the detection result of the pressure sensor 44 stored inthe sensor information storage unit 54 for the pressure P which is aninput parameter of the formula (1) to calculate the formula (1). Thus,the depth D of the viewpoint of the tomographic image is acquired.Accordingly, the tomographic image generation unit 64 generates the dataof the tomographic image that shows inside the body hb at the positionof the calculated depth D of the viewpoint of the tomographic image. Inthis manner, the tomographic image generation unit 64 can generate thetomographic image data in which the depth D of the viewpoint is changedaccording to the intensity of the pressure P.

Herein, the tomographic image generation unit 64 multiplies variation ofthe pressure P applied to the body hb by the image processing device 1by α times to acquire the depth D of the viewpoint of the tomographicimage. That is, even though a change in the pressure P is small, thesmall change is amplified by α times. Thus, the change in the depth D ofthe viewpoint of the tomographic image becomes large.

FIG. 7 is a diagram specifically illustrating a process result of FIG.6.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, if the pressure P applied to the body hb bythe image processing device 1 is pressure P1, the display unit 11displays the tomographic image g1 of a position nearer to a surface.Further, if the pressure P applied to the body hb by the imageprocessing device 1 is pressure P2, which is stronger than the pressureP1, the display unit 11 displays a tomographic image g2 whose depth D ofthe viewpoint is deeper than that of the tomographic image g1.

When the image processing device 1 is pressed against a predeterminedposition of the body hb, that position may be a painful area. In thiscase, if the pressure P applied to the body hb by the image processingdevice 1 is too strong, there is a possibility that a subject may sufferfrom a pain. Further, if the pressure P applied to the body hb by theimage processing device 1 is too strong, the body hb's position wherethe image processing device 1 is pressed may be deformed. In this case,there is a possibility that an ultrasonic examination cannot be madeprecisely. Therefore, as described above, even if the pressure P appliedto the body hb by the image processing device 1 is small, the depth D ofthe viewpoint is arranged to be large.

[Relationship Between Angle of Rotating about X Axis and TomographicImage]

Next, the relationship between the angle of pressing the imageprocessing device 1 against the body hb and the tomographic image isdescribed.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between an angle ofrotating the image processing device 1 about an X axis and a tomographicimage.

Herein, if the probe 12 provided to a back surface of the imageprocessing device 1 is arranged at a predetermined position parallel toan XY plain surface, such condition is called a reference condition.Further, the tomographic image taken with the image processing device 1in the reference condition is called a reference tomographic image.Specifically, the tomographic image that corresponds to theabove-described reference data is the reference tomographic image. Notethat, a rotation angle of rotating the image processing device 1, fromthe reference condition, about the X axis is described as Δx.

As illustrated at an upper side of FIG. 8A, for example, it is presumedthat the image processing device 1 is rotated by the rotation angle Δxabout the X axis and the thus rotated image processing device 1 ispressed against the body hb.

In this case, as illustrated at a lower side of FIG. 8A, a tomographicimage g11 displayed on the display unit 11 is obtained by rotating thetomographic image about the X axis at a rotation angle θx relative tothe reference tomographic image. The rotation angle θx is obtained byamplifying the actual rotation angle Δx by β times. Note that acoefficient β is a parameter for adjustment, and an examiner can freelyset and change the coefficient. FIG. 8B is a diagram schematicallyillustrating the rotation angle Δx of the image processing device 1 andthe rotation angle θx of the tomographic image g11 in FIG. 8A.

The sensor information acquisition unit 63 acquires the rotation angleof the image processing device 1 as one of types of sensor informationand stores the sensor information in the sensor information storage unit54. Then, the tomographic image generation unit 64 substitutes therotation angle about the X axis out of this rotation angle for an inputparameter Δx to calculate the following formula (2). Accordingly, therotation angle θx (that is, a tilt of the tomographic image) about the Xaxis relative to the reference tomographic image is acquired.θx=β×Δx  (2)

Then, the tomographic image generation unit 64 generates data of thetomographic image rotated at the rotation angle θx about the X axisrelative to the reference tomographic image, in other words, generatesdata of the tomographic image whose tilt is changed.

Similarly to pressing the image processing device 1 against thepredetermined position of the body hb, with the image processing device1 being tilted (rotated about the X axis), the tilting side is pressedagainst the body. However, the position pressed by the tilting side maybe a painful area. In this case, if the rotation angle Δx of the imageprocessing device 1 is too large, the image processing device 1 ispressed against the body hb with a strong pressure accordingly. Thus,there is a possibility that a subject suffers from a pain. Further, ifthe rotation angle Δx of the image processing device 1 is too large, asa result of tilting the image processing device 1, a position of thebody hb where the image processing device 1 is pressed may be deformed.In this case, there is a possibility that an ultrasonic examinationcannot be performed properly. Therefore, as has been described above,even if the rotation angle Δx of the image processing device 1 is small,the rotation angle θx of the tomographic image is arranged to be large.

[Relationship Between Angle of Rotating about Y Axis and TomographicImage]

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the angle ofrotating the image processing device 1 about a Y axis and a tomographicimage. Note that, the rotation angle of rotating the image processingdevice 1, from a reference condition, about the Y axis is described asΔy.

As illustrated in an upper side of FIG. 9A, for example, it is presumedthat the image processing device 1 is rotated at the rotation angle Δyabout the Y axis, and the thus rotated image processing device 1 ispressed against the body hb.

In this case, as illustrated at a lower side of FIG. 9A, a tomographicimage g21 displayed on the display unit 11 is obtained by rotating thetomographic image about the Y axis at a rotation angle θy relative to areference tomographic image. The rotation angle θy is obtained byamplifying the actual rotation angle Δy by γ times. Note that acoefficient γ is a parameter for adjustment, and an examiner can freelyset and change the coefficient. FIG. 9B is a diagram schematicallyillustrating the rotation angle Δy of the image processing device 1 andthe rotation angle θy of the tomographic image g21 in FIG. 9A.

The sensor information acquisition unit 63 acquires the rotation angleof the image processing device 1 as one of types of sensor informationand stores the sensor information in the sensor information storage unit54. Then, the tomographic image generation unit 64 substitutes therotation angle about the Y axis out of this rotation angle for an inputparameter Δy to calculate the following formula (3). Accordingly, therotation angle θy (a tilt of the tomographic image) about the Y axisrelative to the reference tomographic image is acquired.θy=γ×Δy  (3)

Then, the tomographic image generation unit 64 generates data of thetomographic image rotated at the rotation angle θy about the Y axisrelative to the reference tomographic image, in other words, generatesdata of the tomographic image whose tilt is changed.

Similarly to pressing the image processing device 1 against thepredetermined position of the body hb, with the image processing device1 being tilted (rotated about the Y axis), the tilting side is pressedagainst the body. However, the position pressed by the tilting side maybe a painful area. In this case, if the rotation angle Δy of the imageprocessing device 1 is too large, the image processing device 1 ispressed against the body hb with a strong pressure accordingly.Therefore, there is a possibility that a subject suffers from a pain.Further, if the rotation angle Δy of the image processing device 1 istoo large, as a result of tilting the image processing device 1, thebody hb's position where the image processing device 1 is pressed may bedeformed. In this case, there is a possibility that an ultrasonicexamination cannot be performed properly. Therefore, as has beendescribed above, even if the rotation angle Δy of the image processingdevice 1 is small, the rotation angle θy of the tomographic image isarranged to be large.

Each of the rotation angles θx and θy is obtained by tilting the imageprocessing device 1 about the X axis or the Y axis from the referencetomographic image. Note that it is preferable that the rotation anglesθx and θy be within the range of the angle from −90 degrees to 90degrees. This is because, if the angle of a viewpoint of the tomographicimage is changed within a range larger than the range of the angle from−90 degrees to 90 degrees, it becomes difficult to perform an ultrasonicexamination.

FIG. 10 is a diagram specifically illustrating a process result of FIG.9.

As illustrated in a left side of FIG. 10, if the image processing device1 in a reference condition is pressed against a predetermined positionof the body hb, the display unit 11 displays a reference tomographicimage g20.

It is presumed that, from this condition, the image processing device 1is rotated at the rotation angle Δy about the Y axis and the thusrotated image processing device 1 is pressed against the body hb, asillustrated on a right side of FIG. 10. Then, the display unit 11displays a tomographic image g21 obtained by rotating the tomographicimage at the rotation angle θy about the Y axis, relative to thereference tomographic image, which is illustrated with a dotted line.The rotation angle θy is obtained by amplifying the actual rotationangle Δy γ times.

[Relationship Between Angle of Rotating about Z Axis and TomographicImage]

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the angle ofrotating the image processing device 1 about the Z axis and thetomographic image. Note that a rotation angle of rotating the imageprocessing device 1, from a reference condition, about the Z axis isdescribed as Δz.

As illustrated on an upper left side of FIG. 11, for example, it ispresumed that the image processing device 1 is rotated clockwise at therotation angle Δz=Δz1 about the Z axis, and the thus rotated imageprocessing device 1 is pressed against the body hb.

Then, as illustrated in a lower side of FIG. 11, as compared with anangular field when imaging a reference tomographic image illustratedwith a dotted line (hereinafter referred to as a reference angularfield), an angular field when imaging an object to be examined (a rangefor the object to be examined to be shown in a tomographic image g41) isreduced by 1/(δ×Δz1) times in size. Note that a coefficient δ is aparameter for adjustment and an examiner can freely set and change thecoefficient. In other words, the object to be examined which is zoomedin by (δ×Δz1) times is shown in the tomographic image g41.

Further, as illustrated in an upper right side of FIG. 11, for example,it is presumed that the image processing device 1 is rotated clockwiseabout the Z axis, and with the rotation angle being Δz=Δz2(>Δz1), thethus rotated image processing device 1 is pressed against the body hb.

Then, as illustrated in a lower side of FIG. 11, as compared with thereference angular field, an angular field when imaging the object to beexamined (the range for the object to be examined to be shown in atomographic image g42) is further reduced by 1/(δ×Δz2) times in size. Inother words, the object to be examined which is further zoomed in by(δ×Δz2) times is shown in the tomographic image g42.

Reversely, although not shown, it is presumed that the image processingdevice 1 is rotated at the rotation angle Δz counterclockwise about theZ axis, and the thus rotated image processing device is pressed againstthe body hb.

Then, as compared with the reference angular field, an angular fieldwhen imaging the object to be examined (the range for the object to beexamined to be shown in the tomographic image) is increased by (δ×Δz)times. In other words, the object to be examined which is zoomed out by1/(δ×Δz) times is shown in the tomographic image.

The sensor information acquisition unit 63 acquires the rotation anglesof the image processing device 1 as one of types of sensor informationand stores the sensor information in the sensor information storage unit54. Then, if the rotation is clockwise, the tomographic image generationunit 64 substitutes the rotation angle about the Z axis out of thisrotation angles for an input parameter Δz to calculate the followingformula (4). Alternatively, the tomographic image generation unit 64calculates the following formula (5) if the rotation iscounterclockwise. Accordingly, a change rate (hereinafter referred to asa zoom ratio) Zoom of a size of an angular field relative to a referenceangular field is acquired.Zoom=1/(δ×Δz)  (4)Zoom=(δ×Δz)  (5)

Then, the tomographic image generation unit 64 generates data of atomographic image that shows the object to be examined with an angularfield whose size has been changed by Zoom times relative to thereference angular field. In other words, the tomographic imagegeneration unit 64 generates data of a zoomed-in or zoomed-outtomographic image.

FIG. 12 is a diagram specifically illustrating a process result of FIG.11.

As illustrated in a left side of FIG. 11, when the image processingdevice 1 with the reference angular field is pressed against thepredetermined position of the body hb, the display unit 11 displays areference tomographic image g40.

It is presumed that, from this condition, as illustrated in a right sideof FIG. 12, the image processing device 1 is rotated clockwise at therotation angle Δz about the Z axis, and the thus rotated imageprocessing device 1 is pressed against the body hb. Then, the displayunit 11 displays a tomographic image g51 whose size is reduced by1/(δ×Δz) times relative to the reference angular field illustrated witha dotted line.

It is preferable if image correction is made such that even if the imageprocessing device 1 is rotated, the tomographic image displayed on thedisplay unit 11 is not rotated. This is because, if the tomographicimage is rotated along with the rotation of the image processing device1, it becomes difficult to perform the ultrasonic examination.

As has been described, an examiner performs an intuitive and simplifiedoperation such as changing the pressure P and the rotation angles Δx,Δy, and Δz in pressing the image processing device 1 against the bodyhb. By performing the operation, the tomographic image displayed on thedisplay unit 11 can be easily switched.

[Variation]

In the above-described embodiment, to switch a tomographic imagedisplayed on the display unit 11, an examiner has changed the pressure Pand the rotation angles Δx, Δy, and Δz in pressing the image processingdevice 1 against the body hb. However, a method for switching thetomographic image displayed on the display unit 11 is not limited to theabove-described embodiment. Alternatively, for example, the tomographicimage may be switched by an operation on a touch panel by the examinerwhen the touch panel laminated all over a display screen of the displayunit 11 is adopted as an input unit 52 of the image processing device 1.

More specifically, although not shown, the input unit 52 configured asthe touch panel is laminated all over the display screen of the displayunit 11, detects coordinates of a position where a touch operation ismade, and feeds a detection result thereof to a tomographic imagegeneration unit 64. Note that the touch operation means contacting thetouch panel with an object (for example, a finger of a user and a styluspen) or a similar operation. The tomographic image generation unit 64acquires the coordinates of the position of the touch panel where atouch operation is made as parameters, and transforms the referencetomographic image according to a change of the parameters to generatethe tomographic image of the object to be displayed on the display unit11.

[Operation with Touch Panel]

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display screen when anoperation is made through a touch panel.

As illustrated in FIG. 13A, in an area near a right surface side on thedisplay unit 11, a slider SL1 for changing a rotation angle θx forrotating a tomographic image about an X axis is provided. Further, in anarea near a lower surface side of the display unit 11, a slider SL2 forchanging a rotation angle θy for rotating the tomographic image about aY axis is provided. Furthermore, in an upper right area of the displayunit 11, a slider SL3 for changing a distance in a Z axis direction ofthe tomographic image, that is, a depth D of a viewpoint is provided.

Specifically, with respect to the slider SL1, a center positioncorresponds to a rotation angle θx=0, and the upper the slider ispositioned, for example, the larger the clockwise rotation angle θx, andthe lower the slider is positioned, for example, the larger thecounterclockwise rotation angle θx. Note that, according to an operationof the slider SL1, the rotation angle θx of the tomographic image isdisplayed near the slider SL1. From “Tilt +10°” displayed in the exampleof FIG. 13, it may be understood that the display unit 11 displays thetomographic image rotated clockwise at the rotation angle θx=10 degreesabout the X axis, relative to the reference tomographic image.

With respect to the slider SL2, a center position corresponds to arotation angle θy=0, and the further right the slider is positioned, forexample, the larger the clockwise rotation angle θy. The further leftthe slider is positioned, for example, the larger the counterclockwiserotation angle θy. Note that, according to an operation of the sliderSL2, the rotation angle θy of the tomographic image is displayed nearthe slider SL2. From “Roll −5°” displayed in the example of FIG. 13, itmay be understood that the display unit 11 displays the tomographicimage rotated counterclockwise at the rotation angle θy=5 degrees aboutthe Y axis, relative to the reference tomographic image.

With respect to the slider SL3, an upper right position corresponds to aviewpoint depth D=0, and the further lower left the slider ispositioned, the larger the viewpoint depth D. Note that, according to anoperation of the slider SL3, the viewpoint depth D of the tomographicimage is displayed near the slider SL3. From “Depth 15 mm” displayed inthe example of FIG. 13, it may be understood that the display unit 11displays the tomographic image of the viewpoint depth D=15 mm.

As illustrated in FIG. 13B, the examiner places two fingers f1 and f2 onthe touch panel to perform a touch operation of widening or narrowing aspace between the fingers f1 and f2 (hereinafter, such touch operationis referred to as a pinch operation). Accordingly, zoom-in and zoom-outof the tomographic image displayed on the display unit 11 can beinstructed. That is, the pinch operation can be adopted alternatively,as the above-described operation for rotating the image processingdevice 1 about the Z axis.

Specifically, the pinch operation of widening the space between thefingers f1 and f2 leads to zoom-in of the tomographic image. Reversely,the pinch operation of narrowing the space between the fingers f1 and f2leads to zoom-out of the tomographic image. Thus, according to the pinchoperation, a zoom ratio of the tomographic image is displayed on anupper left area of the display unit 11. From “Zoom 100%” displayed inthe example of FIG. 13, it may be understood that the display unit 11displays the tomographic image whose zoom ratio is 100%.

[Another Example of Operation Through Touch Panel]

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating another example of a display screenwhen an operation is performed though a touch panel.

FIG. 14A illustrates an example of switching display of a tomographicimage according to the number of times a button is pressed.

As illustrated in FIG. 14A, at a lower right area of the display unit11, software buttons bt1, bt2, software buttons bt11, bt12, softwarebuttons bt21, bt22 and software buttons bt31, bt32 are arrayed. Thesoftware buttons bt1 and bt2 serve to change a zoom ratio of thetomographic image. The software buttons bt11 and bt12 serve to change arotation angle θx for rotating the tomographic image about an X axis.The software buttons bt21 and bt22 serve to change a rotation angle θyfor rotating the tomographic image about a Y axis. The software buttonsbt31 and bt32 serve to change a distance in a Z axis direction of thetomographic image, that is, a viewpoint depth D.

Specifically, as the number of times the software button bt1 is pressedis increased, the zoom ratio becomes large. Reversely, as the number oftimes the software button bt2 is pressed is increased, the zoom ratiobecomes small. Thus, the zoom ratio of the tomographic image is changedaccording to the number of times the software button bt1 or bt2 ispressed, and such zoom ratio of the tomographic image is displayed at aleft side of the software button bt1.

Additionally, as the number of times the software button bt11 is pressedis increased, for example, a clockwise rotation angle θx becomes large.Reversely, as the number of times the software button bt12 is pressed isincreased, for example, the clockwise rotation angle θx becomes small.Thus, the rotation angle θx of the tomographic image is changedaccording to the number of times the software button bt11 or bt12 ispressed, and such rotation angle θx of the tomographic image isdisplayed at a left side of the software button bt11.

Further additionally, as the number of times the software button bt21 ispressed is increased, for example, a clockwise rotation angle θy becomeslarge. Reversely, as the number of times the software button bt22 ispressed is increased, for example, the clockwise rotation angle θybecomes small. Thus, the rotation angle θy of the tomographic image ischanged according to the number of times the software button bt21 orbt22 is pressed, and such rotation angle θy of the tomographic image isdisplayed at a left side of the software button bt21.

Still further, as the number of times the software button bt31 ispressed is increased, the viewpoint depth D becomes large. Reversely, asthe number of times the software button bt32 is pressed is increased,the viewpoint depth D is approximated to zero. Thus, the viewpoint depthD of the tomographic image is changed according to the number of timesthe software button bt31 or bt32 is pressed, and such viewpoint depth Dof the tomographic image is displayed at a left side of the softwarebutton bt31.

FIG. 14B is a diagram illustrating an example of switching display ofthe tomographic image according to how long a button is pressed.

As illustrated in FIG. 14B, at a lower right area of the display unit11, software buttons bt41, bt42, bt43, and bt44 are arrayed. Thesoftware button bt41 serves to change a zoom ratio of the tomographicimage. The software button bt42 serves to change a rotation angle θx forrotating the tomographic image about an X axis. The software button bt43serves to change a rotation angle θy for rotating the tomographic imageabout a Y axis. The software button bt44 serves to change a distance ina Z axis direction of the tomographic image, that is, a viewpoint depthD.

Specifically, the longer the pressing time of the software button bt41,the larger the zoom ratio. If the zoom ratio reaches a pre-set maximumvalue, the zoom ratio is switched to a pre-set minimum value. Thus, thezoom ratio of the tomographic image is changed according to the pressingtime of the software button bt41, and such zoom ratio of the tomographicimage is displayed at a left side of the software button bt41.

Similarly, the longer the pressing time of the software button bt42, forexample, the larger the clockwise rotation angle θx. If the clockwiserotation angle θx reaches a pre-set maximum value, the rotation angle isswitched to a minimum value of the clockwise rotation angle θx. Thus,the rotation angle θ of the tomographic image is changed according tothe pressing time of the software button bt42, and such rotation angle θof the tomographic image is displayed at a left side of the softwarebutton bt42.

Further similarly, the longer the pressing time of the software buttonbt43, for example, the larger the clockwise rotation angle θy. If theclockwise rotation angle θy reaches a pre-set maximum value, theclockwise rotation angle θy is switched to a minimum value. Thus, therotation angle θ of the tomographic image is changed according to thepressing time of the software button bt43, and such rotation angle θ ofthe tomographic image is displayed at a left side of the software buttonbt43.

Still further similarly, the longer the pressing time of the softwarebutton bt44, the larger the viewpoint depth D. If the viewpoint depth Dreaches a pre-set maximum value, the viewpoint depth is switched to aminimum value of the viewpoint depth D, that is, 0 mm. Thus, theviewpoint depth D of the tomographic image is changed according to thepressing time of the software button bt44, and such viewpoint depth D ofthe tomographic image is displayed at a left side of the software buttonbt44.

Note that the software buttons bt41 to bt44 may be displayed in such amanner that a radius of a circle becomes large in proportion to thepressing time.

[Method for Displaying Tomographic Image]

Note that a method for displaying a tomographic image on the displayunit 11 is not particularly limited. Hereinafter, an example of themethod for displaying the tomographic image is described by referring toFIGS. 15 and 16.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the tomographicimage.

In an example of FIG. 15, the display unit 11 displays, on the entirescreen, the tomographic image as a main image and displays, at a lowerright edge, a sub-image r1 such that the sub-image r1 overlaps the mainimage. The sub-image indicates which position of the body hb is shown asa cross-section in the tomographic image. A cuboid rs included in thesub-image r1 indicates a portion of the body hb immediately below theimage processing device 1. A plain surface rc displayed in the cuboid rsindicates a position of the cross-section of the body hb shown in thetomographic image displayed on the display unit 11.

Thus, an examiner views the sub-image r1 to intuitively grasp whichcross-section in the body corresponds to a region shown in the mainimage (that is, the tomographic image).

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating another display example of thetomographic image.

In an example of FIG. 16, according to a viewpoint depth D of thetomographic image, a display size relative to the display unit 11, thatis, occupancy of the tomographic image in the whole screen of thedisplay unit 11 is changed. Specifically, the shallower the viewpointdepth D of the tomographic image, the larger the occupancy of thetomographic image in the display unit 11. Thus, at a left side of FIG.16, the tomographic image whose viewpoint depth D is the shallowest,that is, the tomographic image displayed all over the screen of thedisplay unit 11 is illustrated. From this, as illustrated at a rightside of FIG. 16, if the viewpoint depth D of the tomographic image isdeepened, the occupancy of the tomographic image in the display unit 11is lowered. That is, a relative display size of the tomographic image onthe display unit 11 is reduced.

In summary, as a feature of a person in viewing an object, when theperson views a near object, the object is recognized to be relativelylarge. On the other hand, when the person views a far object, the objectis recognized to be relatively small. A natural law of perspective is amethod that takes in such feature as a composition of painting andpicture. Such method is also applied to the example of FIG. 16. Thus,the examiner can grasp an imaging position in the body more intuitively.

In the above-described display processes of an ultrasonic examinationresult, an examiner may select either one of a first mode and a secondmode by switching. The first mode uses sensor information to change thetomographic image. The second mode directly displays a three-dimensionalultrasonic image of an object in the body hb that is immediately belowan area where the probe 12 is pressed. If the second mode is adopted, adisplay control unit 65 controls the display unit 11 to display thethree-dimensional ultrasonic image of the object in the body hb that isimmediately below the area where the probe 12 is pressed, based on dataof the three-dimensional ultrasonic image stored in the ultrasonic image53.

As has been described, in the above-described example, data of thetomographic image has been generated according to both a pressure changewhen the image processing device 1 is pressed against the body hb and achange of a rotation angle of the image processing device 1 about the Xaxis, Y axis, and Z axis. However, each of the pressure change and thechange of the rotation angle is an independent element for generation ofthe data of the tomographic image. Thus, either one of the elements maybe used to generate the tomographic image.

Further, in the above-described example, the image processing device 1is configured by physically integrating the probe 12 and the housing 1Cthat includes the display unit 11. However, if wired or wirelessconnection is electrically made between the housing 1C and the probe 12,a physical positional relationship is not particularly limited. Forexample, the probe 12 may be physically separated from the housing 1C.In this case, while an examiner holds the probe 12 to make anexamination, a subject may hold the housing 1C to observe thetomographic image displayed on the display unit 11.

Alternatively, the data of the tomographic image imaged by the imageprocessing device 1 may be transferred to another information processingdevice so that a display unit of the other information processing devicedisplays the tomographic image. In this case, a method for transferringthe data of the tomographic image is not particularly limited.

In the above-described example, the image processing device 1 displaysthe tomographic image in real time while imaging an ultrasonic image.However, each of imaging the ultrasonic image and generating the data ofthe tomographic image is an independent process. Thus, the imageprocessing device 1 may generate the data of the tomographic imageseparately after recording the ultrasonic image. Specifically, the imageprocessing device 1 may image a whole of the ultrasonic image inadvance, and thereafter, at any timing, may display the tomographicimage. In this case, if the data of the ultrasonic image is storedtogether with sensor information by the image processing device 1, aperson who images the ultrasonic image and an examiner who makes anultrasonic examination may be different persons. For example, even ifthe examiner is present in a place remote from a place where a subjectis present, the examiner can freely view the tomographic image of anyposition in the body of the subject after imaging the ultrasonic image.As a result, as a part of a remote medical care, an appropriateultrasonic examination can be realized.

Note that the present technique can be used for both a medical carepurpose and a non-medical care purpose. Examples of the non-medical carepurpose include health control. In this case, it is preferable if afrequency and intensity of an ultrasonic wave can be appropriatelyadjusted.

Further, the present technique can be widely used not only for a human,but also for, for example, an animal, a plant, and an artifact whenimaging a cross-section of an object with the ultrasonic wave.

[Application of Present Technique to Program]

The above-described series of processes can be performed by hardware,and can also be performed by software. When the series of processes isto be performed by software, the programs that form the software areinstalled into a computer. Here, the computer may be a computerincorporated into special-purpose hardware, or may be a general-purposepersonal computer that can execute various kinds of functions byinstalling various kinds of programs thereto.

FIG. 17 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary structure of thehardware of a computer that performs the above-described series ofoperations in accordance with a program.

In the computer, a central processing unit (CPU) 101, a read only memory(ROM) 102, and a random access memory (RAM) 103 are connected to oneanother by a bus 104.

An input/output interface 105 is further connected to the bus 104. Aninput unit 106, an output unit 107, a storage unit 108, a communicationunit 109, and a drive 110 are connected to the input/output interface105.

The input unit 106 is formed with a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone andthe like. The output unit 107 is formed with a display, a speaker andthe like. The storage unit 108 is formed with a hard disk, a nonvolatilememory or the like. The communication unit 109 is formed with a networkinterface or the like. The drive 110 drives a removable medium 111 suchas a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magnetooptical disk, or asemiconductor memory.

In the computer having the above-described structure, the CPU 101 loadsa program stored in the storage unit 108 into the RAM 103 via theinput/output interface 105 and the bus 104, and executes the program, sothat the above-described series of operations is performed.

The programs to be executed by the computer (CPU 101) may be recorded onthe removable medium 111 as a package medium to be provided, forexample. Alternatively, the programs can be provided via a wired orwireless transmission medium such as a local area network, the Internet,or digital satellite broadcasting.

In the computer, the programs can be installed into the storage unit 108via the input/output interface 105 when the removable medium 111 ismounted on the drive 110. The program can also be received by thecommunication unit 109 via a wired or wireless transmission medium, andbe installed into the storage unit 108. Also, the program may beinstalled beforehand into the ROM 102 or the storage unit 108.

The programs to be executed by the computer may be programs forperforming processes in chronological order in accordance with thesequence described in this specification, or may be programs forperforming processes in parallel or performing a process when necessary,such as when there is a call.

It should be noted that embodiments of the present technique are notlimited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications maybe made to it without departing from the scope of the present technique.

For example, the present technique can be embodied in a cloud computingstructure in which one function is shared among apparatuses via anetwork, and processing is performed by the apparatuses which cooperatewith one another.

The respective steps described with reference to the above-describedflowcharts can be carried out by one apparatus or can be shared amongapparatuses.

In a case where more than one process is included in one step, theprocesses included in the step can be performed by one apparatus or canbe shared among apparatuses.

The present technique may also be embodied in the structures describedbelow.

(1)

An image processing device including:

a probe that generates an ultrasonic wave and receives a reflective wavereflected at an object;

a sensor unit that detects one or more physical quantities of the probe;

a display unit that displays a tomographic image showing a cross-sectionof a predetermined position of the object based on the reflective wavereceived by the probe;

a tomographic image generation unit that generates the tomographic imageto be displayed on the display unit by regarding sensor informationdetected by the sensor unit as a parameter and by transforming areference tomographic image according to a change of the parameter; and

a display control unit that controls the display unit to display thetomographic image generated by the tomographic image generation unit.

(2)

The image processing device according to (1) above, wherein thetomographic image generation unit uses at least a part of the sensorinformation as an input parameter to calculate a predetermined function,obtains accordingly at least one of variable elements of a depth, arotation angle, and a zoom ratio of the tomographic image, andtransforms the reference tomographic image by use of the variableelement to generate the tomographic image to be displayed.

(3)

The image processing device according to (1) or (2) above, wherein thesensor unit detects pressure applied by the probe as the sensorinformation, and

the tomographic image generation unit associates a change of thepressure with a change in a depth from a predetermined position of theobject to generate the tomographic image.

(4)

The image processing device according to any one of (1) to (3) above,wherein the tomographic image generation unit generates the tomographicimage such that the stronger the pressure of the probe, the deeper thedepth of the tomographic image from the predetermined position of theobject.

(5)

The image processing device according to any one of (1) to (4) above,wherein the sensor unit detects a rotation angle of the probe as thesensor information, and

the tomographic image generation unit associates a change in therotation angle with the rotation angle and/or the zoom ratio of thetomographic image to generate the tomographic image.

(6)

The image processing device according to any one of (1) to (5) above,wherein the sensor information includes each rotation angle of an Xaxis, a Y axis, and a Z axis, as the rotation angle, and

the tomographic image generation unit associates a change in therotation angle of the X axis with the rotation angle of the X axis ofthe tomographic image, associates a change in the rotation angle of theY axis with the rotation angle of the Y axis of the tomographic image,and associates a change in the rotation angle of the Z axis with thezoom ratio of the tomographic image to generate the tomographic image.

(7)

The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (6)above, wherein the tomographic image generation unit generates thetomographic image such that the larger the rotation angle of the X axisor the rotation angle of the Y axis, the larger the rotation angle ofthe tomographic image.

(8)

The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (7)above, wherein the tomographic image generation unit generates thetomographic image such that the larger the rotation angle of the Z axis,the larger the zoom ratio of the tomographic image.

(9)

The image processing device according to any one of (1) to (8) above,wherein the tomographic image generation unit obtains information on atouch operation on a touch panel as a parameter, transforms thereference tomographic image by associating the transformation with thechange of the parameter to generate the tomographic image to bedisplayed on the display unit.

(10)

An image processing method to be performed by an image processing devicethat includes a probe that generates an ultrasonic wave and receives areflective wave reflected at an object, the method including the stepsof:

detecting one or more physical quantities of the probe;

displaying a tomographic image showing a cross-section of apredetermined position of the object based on the reflective wavereceived by the probe;

generating the tomographic image to be displayed by regarding detectedsensor information as a parameter and transforming a referencetomographic image according to a change of the parameter; and

controlling to display the generated tomographic image.

(11)

A program readable by a computer that controls an image processingdevice that includes a probe that generates an ultrasonic wave andreceives a reflective wave reflected at an object, the program causingthe computer to execute the steps of:

detecting one or more physical quantities of the probe;

displaying a tomographic image showing a cross-section of apredetermined position of the object based on the reflective wavereceived by the probe;

generating the tomographic image to be displayed by regarding detectedsensor information as a parameter and transforming a referencetomographic image according to a change of the parameter; and

controlling to display the generated tomographic image.

The present technique can be applied to an ultrasonic examinationdevice.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   1 Image processing device-   1C Housing-   11 Display unit-   12 Probe-   21 Ultrasonic wave transmission/reception unit-   22 Detection unit-   31 Ultrasonic wave generation unit-   32 Ultrasonic wave reception unit-   41 Acceleration sensor-   42 Angular velocity sensor-   43 Geomagnetic sensor-   44 Pressure sensor-   51 Main control unit-   52 Input unit-   53 Ultrasonic image storage unit-   54 Sensor information storage unit-   55 Tomographic image storage unit-   61 Ultrasonic wave control unit-   62 Ultrasonic image generation unit-   63 Sensor information acquisition unit-   64 Tomographic image generation unit-   65 Display control unit

The invention claimed is:
 1. An image processing device, comprising: aprobe configured to: generate an ultrasonic wave; and receive areflective wave reflected from an object; a sensor unit configured todetect sensor information of the probe, wherein the sensor informationindicates a pressure applied on a body that includes the object; atomographic image generation unit configured to: generate a firsttomographic image, based on the sensor information and a referencetomographic image; and change a zoom ratio of the generated firsttomographic image based on a first rotation angle of the probe; and adisplay unit configured to: display the first tomographic image, whereinthe displayed first tomographic image shows a cross-section view ofinside of the body at a position of the object in the body, and whereina depth of a viewpoint of the displayed first tomographic image is basedon the pressure applied on the body; and display a sub-imagesuperimposed on a part of the displayed first tomographic image, whereinthe sub-image indicates the position of the object in the body.
 2. Theimage processing device according to claim 1, wherein the tomographicimage generation unit is further configured to: obtain at least one ofthe depth or a second rotation angle of the first tomographic imagebased on the sensor information; and generate the first tomographicimage, based on at least one of the depth, the second rotation angle, orthe zoom ratio and the reference tomographic image.
 3. The imageprocessing device according to claim 1, wherein the tomographic imagegeneration unit is further configured to change the depth of theviewpoint of the first tomographic image based on a change in thepressure applied on the body.
 4. The image processing device accordingto claim 1, wherein the depth of the viewpoint of the first tomographicimage changes from a first depth to a second depth, based on a change inthe pressure applied on the body, from a first pressure to a secondpressure, wherein the first depth of the first tomographic image isgreater than the second depth of the first tomographic image, andwherein the first pressure applied by the probe on the body is greaterthan the second pressure applied on the body.
 5. The image processingdevice according to claim 1, wherein the sensor information furtherindicates the first rotation angle of the probe, and wherein thetomographic image generation unit is further configured to change asecond rotation angle of the first tomographic image based on the firstrotation angle of the probe.
 6. The image processing device according toclaim 5, wherein the first rotation angle of the probe comprises atleast one of a third rotation angle of an X axis of the probe, or afourth rotation angle of a Y axis of the probe, or a fifth rotationangle of a Z axis of the probe, wherein the X axis, the Y axis, and theZ axis are mutually perpendicular; wherein the tomographic imagegeneration unit is further configured to: change a sixth rotation angleof the X axis of the first tomographic image based on the third rotationangle, change a seventh rotation angle of the Y axis of the firsttomographic image based on the fourth rotation angle, and change thezoom ratio of the first tomographic image based on the fifth rotationangle.
 7. The image processing device according to claim 6, wherein thesixth rotation angle increases from a first value to a second value,based on increase of the third rotation angle from a third value to afourth value, and wherein the seventh rotation angle increases from afifth value to a sixth value, based on increase of the fourth rotationangle from a seventh value to an eighth value.
 8. The image processingdevice according to claim 6, wherein the zoom ratio of the firsttomographic image increases from a first value to a second value, basedon an increase of the fifth rotation angle from a third value to afourth value.
 9. The image processing device according to claim 1,wherein the tomographic image generation unit is further configured togenerate the first tomographic image based on a touch operation on atouch panel.
 10. The image processing device according to claim 1,wherein the tomographic image generation unit is further configured tochange the zoom ratio based on one of a clockwise rotation or ananticlockwise rotation of the image processing device.
 11. The imageprocessing device according to claim 1, wherein the zoom ratio ischanged to a minimum zoom value based on the zoom ratio that reaches amaximum zoom value.
 12. The image processing device according to claim1, wherein the display unit is further configured to display thesub-image at a lower right edge of the first tomographic image.
 13. Theimage processing device according to claim 1, wherein the display unitis further configured to change a display size of the first tomographicimage based on the depth of the viewpoint.
 14. The image processingdevice according to claim 13, wherein the display size of the firsttomographic image changes from a first size to a second size, based on achange in the depth of the viewpoint of the first tomographic image,from a first depth to a second depth, wherein the first size of thefirst tomographic image is smaller than the second size of the firsttomographic image, and wherein the first depth of the first tomographicimage is greater than the second depth of the first tomographic image.15. An image processing method, comprising: in an image processingdevice that includes a probe configured to generate an ultrasonic waveand receive a reflective wave reflected from an object: detecting sensorinformation of the probe, wherein the sensor information indicates apressure applied on a body that includes the object; generating a firsttomographic image, based on the sensor information and a referencetomographic image; changing a zoom ratio of the generated firsttomographic image based on a rotation angle of the probe; displaying thefirst tomographic image, wherein the displayed first tomographic imageshows a cross-section view of inside of the body at a position of theobject in the body, and wherein a depth of a viewpoint of the displayedfirst tomographic image is based on the pressure applied on the body;and displaying a sub-image superimposed on a part of the displayed firsttomographic image, wherein the sub-image indicates the position of theobject in the body.
 16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium havingstored thereon computer-executable instructions, which when executed bya computer, cause the computer to execute operations, the operationscomprising: in an image processing device that includes a probeconfigured to generate an ultrasonic wave and receive a reflective wavereflected from an object: detecting sensor information of the probe,wherein the sensor information indicates a pressure applied on a bodythat includes the object; generating a first tomographic image, based onthe sensor information and a reference tomographic image; changing azoom ratio of the generated first tomographic image based on a rotationangle of the probe; and displaying the first tomographic image, whereinthe displayed first tomographic image shows a cross-section view ofinside of the body at a position of the object in the body, and whereina depth of a viewpoint of the displayed first tomographic image is basedon the pressure applied on the body; and displaying a sub-imagesuperimposed on a part of the displayed first tomographic image, whereinthe sub-image indicates the position of the object in the body.